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Take 5 -October 2025
- Oct 31
- 5 min read
 AB 606 (Quirk-Silva):Addressing California's urgent workforce shortage by streamlining the credentialing process for out-of-state professionals
The Riverside County Office of Education (RCOE), along with co-sponsors the Association of California School Administrators (ACSA), the California Association of School Counselors (CASC), the California Association of School Psychologists (CASP), and the California County Superintendents supported Assembly Bill 606 (signed by the Governor) because it seeks to address California’s urgent shortage of school counselors, psychologists, and social workers by streamlining the credentialing processes for out-of-state professionals. Currently, California’s limited reciprocity provisions create unnecessary barriers for these professionals. The California Commission on Teacher Credentialing (CTC) requires out-of-state candidates to complete additional coursework or supervision hours—often necessitating enrollment in institutions that impose further unit requirements beyond the CTC’s mandates. This complex and burdensome process delays hiring and discourages qualified professionals from entering the state’s workforce, exacerbating already severe shortages. AB 606 offers a practical solution by reducing bureaucratic barriers and enabling highly qualified professionals to contribute their expertise to California Schools. “The passage of AB 606 helps streamline the process for professionals who are ready to bring their depth of expertise and experience to address the increasing social-emotional needs of students," said Dr. Edwin Gomez, Riverside County Superintendent of Schools. "Parents and communities expect our schools to be staffed with educators who can listen and lead with empathy while working with teachers, administrators, and families, to ensure that our campuses remain safe places for students to learn and thrive as they pursue their dreams and grow into their fullest potential.” 
 AB 927 (Sharp-Collins): Ensuring students' access to textbooksGovernor Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill 927 to ensure county offices can complete high-quality reviews of textbooks and instructional materials, as required by the historic civil rights settlement Williams v. State of California (2004). The bill was authored by Dr. LaShae Sharp-Collins, a former member of the San Diego County Office of Education, and sponsored by the California County Superintendents, Los Angeles County Office of Education, and Public Advocates. AB 927 is critical to support students’ rights to a high-quality education.
Due to the pandemic, 46 of the 58 counties will at least double the number of schools identified for Williams monitoring, with no additional funding for COEs to perform oversight inspections. AB 927 addresses this challenge by permitting county superintendents greater time to perform inspections for textbook and instructional materials.
For the Orange County Department of Education, the number of local schools requiring Williams monitoring increased from 32 to 118 schools. “The additional four weeks enabled our team to uphold the high quality of our onboarding process, data collection and site reviews,” said Dr. Stefan Bean, Orange County Superintendent of Schools.
At the San Mateo County Office of Education, the number of Williams schools grew from 19 schools to 52, requiring 104 on-site audits. “By extending the timeline to eight weeks, we have been able to conduct all the Williams audits by recruiting colleagues from several departments and hiring retired education administrators," according to Jeff Schmidt, Coordinator of District Improvement and Support at the San Mateo COE.
 AB 959 (Hadwick): "Grow Your Own" Internship Programs to Build Administrative Pipeline, Allows Teacher Leaders to Stay Close to Home
We are thrilled that the Governor has signed Assembly Bill 959 (Hadwick), a bill co-sponsored by the Placer County Office of Education, the Association of California School Administrators, and the California County Superintendents. This bill makes a small but important change to current law which will allow county offices of education and school districts to offer internship programs leading to a preliminary administrative credential, if approved by the Commission on Teacher Credentialing (CTC). County offices of education (COEs) and school districts often play major roles in their regions’ teacher and administrator preparation, and many already offer both intern programs for teachers, and traditional programs for administrators. Prior to this bill, local educational agencies were prevented from offering preliminary administrative credential candidates the important and highly-sought after opportunity to learn while you earn through an internship program. Allowing COEs and districts to run these programs will foster an environment where teacher leaders can stay close to home for their administrative preparation in a context that is highly localized, contributing to a “grow your own” model that has been shown to be highly effective in reducing turnover. “I’ve seen firsthand the urgent need to strengthen the administrator pipeline, especially in fast-growing regions like Placer County,” said Gayle Garbolino-Mojica, Placer County Superintendent of Schools. “AB 959 gives us the flexibility to create high-quality, locally based internship programs that prepare future school leaders while keeping talented educators rooted in their communities. This is more than a policy win—it’s an investment in the long-term stability and excellence of California’s schools.”
 AB 1224 (Valencia): Vetoed Bill Would Have Provided Instructional Continuity to StudentsThe Orange County Department of Education (OCDE), along with co-sponsors the Association of California School Administrators (ACSA), the California Association of School Business Officials (CASBO), the California County Superintendents, and the California School Boards Association (CSBA) were proud supporters of the progress made with Assembly Bill 1224. This bill would have provided needed instructional continuity to students by extending the number of days in which a substitute teacher can serve in a single classroom to up to 60 days. “By allowing qualified substitutes to continue in the same classroom beyond 30 days, AB 1224 was designed to strengthen consistency for our students, support substitute development, and give our school leaders the space and support to focus on hiring and orienting regular staff.", said Gina Lance, Assistant Superintendent for OCDE and current PASCo Legislative Chair. "As we enter the school year without AB 1224, Day 31 won’t suddenly bring new, permanent teachers into every classroom. Instead, we’ll find familiar disruptions, as school leaders again step in to cover classes, onboard new substitutes, and help students adapt to new temporary staff. For students—especially those who rely most on stability—this kind of change is impactful. It’s why AB 1224 mattered and why we remain committed to finding new solutions that keep our students’ consistency and well-being at the center.” Despite the Legislature’s broad, bipartisan backing, the Governor ultimately vetoed the bill. Although not a desired outcome, we are encouraged by the Governor’s directive to the Commission on Teacher Credentialing to work with education partners on reexamining and amending pathways to ensure students are provided continuity in their classrooms, both in times where a teacher is on statutory leave, as well as periods of critical staffing crises. As co-sponsors of the bill, we are committed to working towards an immediate solution to the education staffing crisis.  AB 1230 (Bonta): New Legislation Sponsored by Alameda COE Strengthens Rehabilitation Plans for Expelled Students
This year Alameda County Office of Education (ACOE) partnered with child advocacy groups to sponsor Assembly Bill 1230. This bill, signed into law on Oct. 3, requires school districts to develop individualized rehabilitation plans for expelled students and supports smooth transitions so students can return successfully to their home district schools. "The passage of AB 1230 into law will help ensure that expulsion rehabilitation plans give students a real chance to move forward. Without it, some of our most vulnerable youth will remain stuck in a cycle of failure," said Alameda County Superintendent of Schools, Alysse Castro. The idea for the bill formed when local advocates representing expelled students shared that these students’ rehabilitation plans often created impossible-to-meet expectations, like requiring a chronically absent student to have perfect attendance or mandating that a low-income student pay for and attend costly counseling sessions. ACOE’s policy advocates heard additional examples from the CA County Superintendents’ County-Operated School Programs Committee. ACOE secured a strong bill author in Assemblymember Mia Bonta (AD18), who recognized the need for this new legislation to “ensure students facing expulsion get the individualized support they need to learn, grow, and thrive.” ACOE, with student services administrators and child advocates, will lead AB 1230 implementation workshops at statewide conferences in 2026–to support rehabilitation plans that are truly rehabilitative, reduce the use of expulsion extensions, and increase academic success for expelled students.
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